BR

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Week of August 15th, 2011 Mision/Vision Statement

Topic of the Week: Mision/Vison Statements What did I learn? I learned the purpose is in order to have a purpose, create culture, and have one goal for everyone to follow. What did I find interesting? I found the fact that there was a significant difference between the two statements. I agree with having both of them because that helps guide the company. What questions do I still have? How many companies don't have a mission/vison statement?

Questions for Presenter 1. What is your favorite football team? 2. What is your favorite part of your job? 3. Is it possible to run out of ideas for new products?

Learning Log 9/4/11 1. I learned a lot this past week. I learned that Hershey does not have their mission statement on their website and instead they let the slogans of their products do that. I also learned that they tend to change the color and designs of their product's packaging. That is attention to detail! The most shocking thing to me was how ahead Hershey was in some of the statistics! It's going to take while for the other companies to catch them.

2. The most interesting topic for me was the internatonal part. I knew that Hershey had different products around the world, but I did not know that they had different flavors varrying from each country! Like how they have some spicy chocolate for Mexico and how they fill some of their products with different fillings. That is what sets Hershey apart from everyone else in my opinion. They have such a variety. They are creative and adjust their products towards the culture of the country.

3. I don't have any further questions; yet! I can't wait to see what new products Hershey has in store. I admire how they do business over seas. That is what I want to do when I get older. I am a big fan of the Reeses though! Actually, I do have a question. How come people over seas aren't big fans of the peanut butter cup?

Week 4 9/18/11

1. I kind of already knew a lot about this information because I'm in accounting. But it was a great review! I did learn more about the Microsoft Surface. That is an amazing product! Microsoft had to have a high working capital in order to produce that product becaue of how much it costs to make it. 2. I found it interesting how company's figure out how much money they actually have. They take the liabilities and subtract that from the assets. That shows how much money they actually have. I found that interesting because I always wanted to find out how companys calculated it. I also found the fact that how much Microsoft produces is interesting too. They make Xboxs, phones, Bing. I never knew they made Bing!

3. I only have one question for this week. How do companies divide up their earnings? What departments and employees get how much percent of it? What if it is not enough? That must be difficult to divide up!

Week 6 9/30/11

Trends: A trend is a growing fad or popularity topic/thing that catches the attention of everyone. The majority of the people who hear about it usually has it. A good example is Facebook. Everyone in this class has a Facebook account. Another trend is smartphones. Yesterday Mr. Jon Strande talked about the affect of smartphones. He gave us a lot of statistics; like how everything you can do on a computer you can now do on a phone. Also how many people have a smartphone/phone. Those are probably two of the fastest growing trends right now.

1. I learned a lot from Mr. Jon Strande and in class this week. I would say the thing that I enjoyed learning about was trends. A trend is a growing fad or popularity topic/thing that catches the attention of everyone. Some of the trends that we learned about were just mind blowing. We talked about the trends in social media, cell phones, Internet use, etc. Those are some of the faster growing trends right now. I also learned that a vast majority of businesses are now accessing Facebook and inserting that in some way into their business! Who ever thought that we would have Facebook at work?

2. I found many things interesting this past week. The part that I found the most interesting was the technology that Mr. Jon Strande talked about. He talked about people wondering how much items cost, or what they are made out of, and then the person would hover their hand over it and all that information would appear from a sensor or some device. The most shocking part is that that technology is only 5-10 years away! This shows a huge trend in technology and how far our nation has come.

Week of October 3, 2011 (Week 7 - Market Research)

1. I learned a multitude of things this past week. I learned about the various ways of how to study and analyze a customer. One of the things I learned was that when Hershey advertises for a holiday product ahead of time, the more people purchase the product. That also increases holiday shopping. Another thing I learned was that the color red attracts younger children. A lot of companies tend to use red to attract the child, which then attracts the usual shopping mother to purchase the product.

2. I enjoyed this presentation a lot! One of the things that I found to be very interesting was the fact that there are so many ways to study a person! I mean our presenters informed us that they study everything from how a person looks at the packaging of a product to the pitch and tone of their voice when talking about the product! Another thing that caught my eye were the snacks that were brought in for us. They were a new Hershey product that mainly contained cocoa. The food has a great deal of antioxidants in it and also tastes amazing! Who knew that cocoa could taste so good!

Week of October 10, 2011 (Week 8- Market Analysis)

1. This week I learned a lot about the international side of the Hershey Company. Our guest speaker talked about his job and how he travels the world for Hershey and finding new ways to market products and do business. One of the things I learned was that Hershey went to Mexico! I heard about that whole situation when it was brought up, but I thought that they didn't make the move. I am not sure if the move is complete or if they are still in the process. I also learned how Hershey does research in other countries. They simply ask around and see what the people like and don't like. They also do tons of research on the major products in the country. I liked this presentation because this is what I want to do in college and as a career!

2. I found one major thing interesting. I found the fact that Reese's is only popular in the United States. Americans love the peanut butter, but globally it is not liked at all. I wonder how Hershey is doing with that product globally. If Reese's was liked world-wide, just think of how much more money Hershey would make! Nobody would be able to catch them; not even MARS!

Week of October 17, 2011 (Week 9- Product Development)

1. I learned a lot this week about products and their stages of development. I learned about the packaging of the products this past week. That process is rigorous! I did not know that so much went into making a simple box for a liquid product. I got to have a look at the product packaging before it was folded into a box. I've always wondered what the inside of one of those boxes looked like! I viewed a clip on the process used to make the product, and I didn't know that it was all done by machines!

2. The one thing that I found most interesting was not the packaging itself, but the product. I have been seeing more usage of the cocoa plant in a lot of products. A few weeks ago we sampled the "Eat, Think, "Smile" product with pure cocoa. And this past week we had a drink, that was delicious by the way, that contained a lot of cocoa. The cocoa is becoming less "sweet." I find that interesting because I never would have thought that almost plain cocoa could taste so good!

Week of October 24, 2011 (Week 9- Product Development)

1. I learned a lot this week; especially from the field trip! I learned that a vast amount of Hershey's machines (not the ones in the factories) can cost millions of dollars. One of the Twizzler machines is worth $18 million! That is insane! And they have larger ones in the plants! One of the jobs that I learned about was a type of chemist that develops certain flavors for the company. That job dishes out a minimum of $100,000! Now that is a well paying job.

2. I found the entire trip interesting because I got to see a close-up and hands-on view of an amazing company! I found two things interesting though. The first thing is that in the taste testing labs, the majority of the workers were females. That wasn't designed to be like that, but it just happened. The second thing was not so much as interesting as it is smart. Hershey begins preparing ideas and products for a holiday up to a year before it even happens! That is planning ahead!

Week of October 31, 2011 (Week 11- Branding)

1. I enjoyed this week because I learned a lot about someting I didn't know about. I learned multiple definitions for branding. I learned that products are "branded" by major corporations. For example; Gatorade is a brand of Pepsi, and Reese's is a brand of Hershey. There are so many aspects and planning steps that go into creating a brand. Hershey created the Kissables. Than they saw that they were too similar to the M&M's, so they cancled that brand. People already knew more about the M&M's than the Kissables. Some aspects of creating brands are; creativity, uniqueness, and flexibility. In other words, what makes this brand stand out from the rest?

2. I found many things interesting this week. I found the number of brands that Hershey and other companies have the most interesting! Hershey has numerous brands, and so does Pepsi, Kraft, Nike, etc. The creativity aspect just amazes me because the companies have to constantly be producing more brands and making new changes to those brands! That takes a lot of thinking and hard work!

Week of November 28, 2011 (Week 14- Special Events)

1. I enjoyed this week because we got T-shirts! No I enjoyed the presentation because I got a chance to look at all of the different advertising/marketing styles there are. My favorite one was event advertising because the consumers get a chance to actually interact with the product in a fun way. The Kiss Mobile is an example. I learned that Hershey does a lot of "partner advertising." The Reese's cups had a picture of the Iron Man 2 movie advertising it. So when a customer sees one product they think of the other one. That is very smart!

2. I found the fact that sponsoring certain events significantly advertises the product. When Reese's/Hersheys sponsored the Final Four college basketball events, they were ranked number four out of all of the sponsoring products that were noticed. That is pretty good! Hershey's sponsors sporting events, movies, etc. I find that interesting because that is a win-win situation. Both companies are taking each others strong points, using them, and making them stronger.

Week of December 5, 2011 (Week 15- Product Safety)

1. I enjoyed this past presentation because I got a chance to learn the process of recalling a product. I learned that different departments of the company handles different steps. Recording information is key; like knowing how much of the product was shipped/sold. I also learned that it could take up to a week to get all of the rejected product back. Before I thought that it only took four or five days. I also learned that the product is immediatley dispossed to a land fill. Initially I thought that a portion was kept for testing.

2. I found that when the product is shipped to a land fill, Hershey requires a certificate of destruction, to be interesting. I found it a little humorous because usually a certificate celebrates something. But I guess celebrating the destruction of unsatisfied customers works too. In the international aspect, Hershey requires a certificate and a Hershey employee there to verify that all of the product was correctly destroyed. That shows me that Hershey values their product!

Week of December 12 (Week 16 Product Components)

1. I was extremely excited to even be there! The part I enjoyed the most was being around the buyers for the entire company who are making six figures! That was just amazing. I learned a lot, especially fron the "nut guy." They all have to watch the currencies of other countries and decide when to buy. They can buy right away or wait a few months for example. I also got a review on how cocoa is grown and produced. I found this trip extremely fun because that is what I want to do; travel to other countries!

Week of January 1 (Week 17 Product Packaging)

1. I found this presentation rather interesting because of how deep the topic went. Packaging is the key to delivering the full quality of the product to the customer/consumer. I found the little facts about packaging interesting. It is what makes buying a product "fun" to the customer. Just think; they already know what they want to buy and what the product is most times. But they could go to purchase their desired product(s) and they could be surprised by the new packaging. Take the Hershey Kiss for example. In China the kisses are sold in a kiss-shaped bag. That is new and it is a big hit over there!

2. The most interesting part for me was learning all of the potential creative ways to mix and match a product's packaging. The Reese's Minis are a grear example. Gamers reported that they find it difficult to play while unwrapping them candy, so Hershey made them come already unwrapped. A mini-sized bag was developed! Packaging is in charge of all that. I just found that "cool" because that was a smart move!

Week of January 9 (Week 18 Product Planning)

1. I liked this presentation because it was filled with a whole bunch of information. I "got a refresher" on the certain time frames that they use. For the holiday of Christmas they would begin to produce their products around August! I also learned that the company does not produce the full amount of a product at times. For example, they will make enough Reese's to last them a certain amount of months to avoid wasting product. I found that quite smart. There is just so much information to keep track of. I give them props!

2. I found the fact that there are so many other costs that have to be handled. Shipping a product to the warehouse in Palmyra, I think it was, is costly in itself! They have to pay the truck driver, pay for the gas, and then take care of the shipping of the product from the warehouse to the retailer. Or the product goes to another warehouse. Then it's the same concept! Just imagine how many trips that is. With the number of products, customers and trips just blew me away because that is a huge cost!

Week of January 16, 2012 (Week 19 - Production)

1. I loved this week's theme because we got to travel to the Reese's Plant! I've been to both Hershey's Plants and the twizzler Plant, but my favorite is the Reese. I liked the Reese Plant the best because of the smells, seeing everything in action and I was blown away by some of the statistics that I learned. I liked Mr. Johnson as well! He was very enthusiastic! I didn't know that they only produced the Reese's and Kit Kat candy there!

2. I found the fact that Mr. H.B. Reese worked for Milton Hershey at a point in time. That's ironic! Who would ever know that two of the best candy makers would be that close! And eventually be all involved with Hershey! I thought it was cool. They had a dream that succeeded beyond their expectations. One of my favorite candies is Reese. I hate to say this but I love Twix and Snickers!

Week of January 23, 2012 (Week 20- Warehousing)

1. I learned a lot of interesting things this past week! I learned about the guts of warehousing and what it takes to make it successful. I also learned a ton of mind blowing facts! The amount of chocolate that the EDClll can pump out in one day is just insane! I can't even imagine the attention to detail that that requires. I also got to see the EDClll after its renovation about a year ago! A lot of space was added and now I see why!

2. I liked visiting the warehouse again. I got a chance to view the actual warehouse and how the loading and all that stuff works last year. I never knew that there are a lot more pieces to the building. I thought it was fun learning about how the warehosue can deal with product and customize orders. Learning about how many trucks there are and how they run was also fun because of the huge amount!

3. The only thing that I did not find fun in was sitting down the entire time. The information was interesting, but how it was being presented was not fun. I understand that it was a lot of information, but the method was a little drowsy. I know that in the future I will most definitely be sitting in long meetings sort of like that, but I think I will be talked to and with instead of talked at. I still appreciated the work and preparation though. That was a huge amount of facts and statistics to know!

4. The only thing that I would say to improve my experience would be the way in which we are presented information. I think the entire class has something very similar to that as well. We all love and are extremely thankful for each time we have a presenter here or we travel! We also enjoy hands-on activities and/or little "fun points" dutring the presentations. I look forward to every Thursday because it is an opportunity to learn about real-world business!

Week 21 Order Management

For a typical order, they can be received through the use of telephone, a fax, an email, the Web, and EDI. Electronic Data Interchange is taken place via the Web and it is basically a messaging system. There is a multitude of different ways! Just in case one fails there will always be a back-up. This is one of the many reasons Hershey is so efficient. Their flexibility and creativity really sets them apart, and that shows in their business. After the order is requested it is entered/taken by an electronic data system. This will “do all the work.” Basically based on the size, amount and type of order that the system receives, it will spit out the price and check all credit limits. It will also check the particular product’s inventory and schedule times. This is all based on ATP. Availability to Promise, or ATP, is ensuring the product is available and will get to the customer, sort of like a promise. Once all the work is done with the order processes the product enters the concept of Management by Exception. This is to protect the product and its quality. Orders are entered as “no touch orders.” This means exactly how it sounds; the product and its information cannot be touched or changed, unless there is an error. Say for example the price of the product fluctuates or changes in price, then the price ordering information must be adjusted accordingly. Another exception would be if the customer requests a change in the order’s amount, product type, etc. After that, it is up to Customer Service to make all necessary changes and ensure that the order is as requested. The last step before the product makes its way to the transportation process it is passed through another exception step. The ATP process is revisited to ensure full product safety and quality. After all of that hard and very detailed work, the product is placed in the transport process. When the order is completely passed and cleared of any and all inefficiencies, it gets entered into the transportation system. The planning for the actual moving of the product begins 48 hours before shipping. This is the reason why Hershey is so successful; their attention to detail.

Week 22 Distribution

Warehousing, order management and distribution would not be anything without the one thing that keeps them going; the product. Just think about that for a minute, all of these revolve around the product. Before warehousing, order management and distribution happen, the product has to first be produced. Take a regular Hershey’s chocolate bar for example. The planning has to be done first, and then the materials like cocoa beans, milk, and sugar have to be purchased and brought in to the factory. Once the product is made it gets shipped into warehouses and distribution centers, like EDClll. Those warehouses can hold an enormous amount of product, and they have countless amounts of trucks! Once the product is brought into the warehouse, the employees can “mix and match” the product. Say for example Wal-Mart wants five pallets of those chocolate bars, but they also want one half of each pallet to contain Reese’s cups. That is when the warehouse/distribution center can divide the product to fit the needs of the customer. That also ties into order management because Hershey is adjusting to the customer’s needs. Order management comes into play when the consumer is working out purchases with Hershey; things like time, place, and mode of transport. Order management also ensures the product’s quality and safety through a system called “no touch orders.” This literally means that the product is not touched or tampered with in any way, unless there is a change in price, amount, or anything that the customer needs. Other than that the product is not touched until it is ready to be loaded and shipped out. That is where distribution comes in. This is probably the simplest part, but the most important because the customer’s product is being delivered. That means that the safety, time, and quality of the product has to be ensured. It needs to be delivered on time and exactly how the customer ordered it. The mode of transport can range from a truck, plane, train, etc. That means that all of the factors like weather, traffic and mechanical issues have to be considered. Overall, warehousing, order management and distribution would not be anything without the product. Each aspect needs the other in order to succeed!

Week 23 Public Relations

1. From yesterday's presentation I think I would like doing PR because it is constantly "moving." This differs from advertising because this is where issues, both good and bad, about the product/company are addressed. Ideas for advertising are also part of PR and where/how to advertise. PR is always dealing with celebrities and social media. There is also a lot of travel involved. That is what I think I would like the most; traveling!

Week 24 Advertising

1. Our presenter, David, accomplished his goal. His goal was to get at least one of us interested in the field of advertising. I am a little interested because it looks fun! I normally don't bother watching commercials at home, but I was interested in them here when they were shown to us. What surprised me the most was how much of Hershey's budget goes into advertising; 90-95 percent! That blew me away because that instantly made me think about what the other 10-5 percent of the money goes to. I can't imagine all of the expenses that advertising requires! It has to be a lot to use up that much amount of money! This field requires an extreme amount of detail. I think I got that!

Week 25 Product Placement

1. This week in class we talked about product placement. We analyzed what processes companies go through simply in placing their product on the store shelves. We talked about certain levels; ankle, knee, waist, eye, and where what products would best fit in order to sell. We also learned about how certain colors attract certain age groups. I enjoyed our presentation that we had because I learned so much more than I thought I would! I didn't know that Hershey actually runs all of those tests on how to place a product. One that stuck out to me was placing the bagged candy on its side. Surprisingly that made it more appealing to me! I enjoyed our little experiment that we did where we had to arrange certain products how we would see them. I think that the placement/arrangement of products is all about the person and their "opinion/wants" because in my group I would not have arranged the products like my peers did and others felt the same way. That is why this "science" can become very difficult at times. I also like how Hershey also analyzes their opponent's strategies. They used M&Ms in their experiments. "I would never buy MARS!"